Genamarie Rosado was the only one in her family to grow up outside New York City. Yeah, she regretted not having that “edge,” but she wouldn’t have traded the woods and creek beds of suburban East Stroudsburg for anything. Besides, her moment in The Big Apple would come soon enough.

Genamarie graduated from East Stroudsburg North in 2014. Soon, neither the charm of a NEPA summer, nor the orange and gold of autumn, or the fresh, cotton-topped Pocono Mountains in winter would hold her. Destiny called her to the NY Institute of Technology and to the hurried excitement of the city. She grew and learned and faced those post-college realities of rent and roommates and student loans. But she wasn’t done. L.A. was next. She saved. She filled her car with everything she had, enlisted her dad as navigator and hit the road. The L.A. scene was working out, until it wasn’t. Enter global pandemic.

Then, on a return visit to NEPA, she hooked up with some friends to work on an independent film project. Suddenly, everything she wanted to do in L.A. was happening right here. Funny how that works out. Since, Genamarie has launched PICturesque Luxury Picnics, a one-of-a-kind, boutique picnic service. Still, this girl isn’t even close to done chasin’ them dreams, but we’ll let her tell it.

We caught up with Genamarie at the adorable Café Duet in Stroudsburg. She took us on a journey from coast to coast, shared a dream or two and sold us on the importance of solid NEPA roots. She even found the time to answer – Why NEPA?

How long have you lived in NEPA?

I was born here. So, 25 years. Give or take a few years away at school.

What do you love about your town?

I really love how it’s kind of a metropolitan area. So, I like the part where I can have my silence and my woods and nature, but then I can come into town where there’s more things to do. And then I can easily go over to New York or down to Philadelphia and have that experience too. I feel like this is a really nice central spot. And I love that.

What’s your favorite NEPA restaurant?

Oh yeah, that’s a hard one (laughs). Ok. There’s a local restaurant that just popped into my head. It’s a great Peruvian restaurant called Inti. It’s back behind Shawnee, by the river. It’s one of my definite favorites. I go there with my dad all the time. He’s always like, “Hey, let’s go to that Peruvian place.” That’s actually the first one that popped into my head when you asked the question, so I’m just sticking with that one (laughs).

What’s your favorite thing to do in NEPA?

I go hiking. I go looking for waterfalls. I’m so bad (laughs nervously). I don’t really remember the names of them. I just kind of know where they are. They’re definitely free ones. You don’t have to pay to see them. I know there’s one that’s my favorite and it’s like seven tiers. It’s so beautiful. Oh… Indian Ladder, or something like that! Yeah, it’s by Skytop. There are also some great trails and falls in the Water Gap area. I also like to spend time kayaking on the river. But that’s about it for all my nature activities (laughs). Yeah, so I love doing that kind of stuff, but lately it’s been so hard to get out when I’m so busy with the business and everything.

What’s next for you?

Well, I would have to say that the next thing is to continue building this picnic business. It’s kind of become my primary focus right now. It’s totally different from entertainment, which is an area that I’ve wanted to be in for so long, but this became my focus because I really fell in love with it. So, I’m looking forward to building it to the point where I can branch it out and hire more people to help manage it. I don’t like to just stay in one place. I’d like to take this business into other parts of NEPA and into other cities around the country. That’s kind of both personal and professional because I love to travel. I love experiencing different places. So, I’m kind of trying to squeeze that passion in alongside the business.

Where do you see NEPA heading in the future?

I’ve seen it grow so much since I was a child – like physically, I mean, with all new businesses and buildings going up. I don’t see that ever stopping. I think we’re going to just continue to grow. I don’t see NEPA becoming all cities, though. And I hope not because we want to keep those natural roots. But I do see us growing into the future and kind of putting ourselves on the map. I think it’ll get to the point where people out in the Midwest and beyond know what the Poconos and NEPA are all about. And they’ll want to visit and maybe relocate here.

Why NEPA?

Personally, because this is where my roots are. I feel a deep, personal connection to the area. My intentions growing up were to end up in some big city like New York or L.A. and make a name for myself, you know? But, being back home, I kind of felt a need to reconnect and give back to what’s always been there for me my whole life. And I wanted to be able to provide something that was different and unique to the people of my hometown. I don’t know if it would have worked in those bigger cities, but it definitely works here because we have something so special going on in NEPA. There’s also a level of comfort here. And I’m the type of person that likes try to push people beyond their comfort zone to experience something new. That’s how you grow, you know?